Thank you on behalf of all of us on Council for
your support in electing us to represent you in the next four years. You have decided to have four Councilors
return for this term and you have chosen three "newbies". My first impressions are that you have done
well. As the "newbies" try and
catch up to issues, files, roles and responsibilities, the veterans have been
great in welcoming us, helping out with the steep learning curve we expect in
any new job, and providing context for previous Council decisions and
direction.
On a personal note I was both honored and humbled
by the support you gave me. I take your
confidence seriously and feel driven to earn your trust in all we do together
on Council.
Thank you is the theme for this article - and
there are many thanks to pass along. All
the staff have been so welcoming, accommodating, and patient with yet another
change that they have to deal with. Some
of you may not know that there have been a number of Chief Administrative
Office (CAO) changes over the past few years.
In addition, both staff and Council have had to deal with the tragedy of
the death of a CAO that is difficult to imagine unless you live it. It has been said that change is the only constant
in this life and the changes are not yet finished for staff and Council. Council is in the midst of searching for, and
the hiring of a CAO. In the past years,
the staff in the Town of Sundre has resiliently banded together as a family,
like we all do in times of stress and tragedy, and they have done everything
they can to provide us with the best service possible. They deserve your support, your patience and
a pat on the back when you see the "good stuff" they do each and
every day. Many of our wise grandparents
have said, "you get what you give" and "you get more with honey
than you do vinegar". When you have
concerns, please come in or call. Staff
and Council are here to serve you.
Please let the staff know about the good stuff you see along with any
concerns you might have. They are really trying to do the job that Council
tells them to do.
Thank you to previous Council members, who are no
longer part of Council, for your dedication to our community, your service, the
sacrifices your families made, and for the good work and legacies you
left. To Mayor Annette Clews, thank you
for running a respectful campaign focused on issues and for the years of your
life that you dedicated to a job not many people want. Thank you for all your efforts to support the
work of local grassroots seniors and the Mountain View Seniors Housing
Authority in securing a $3.8 million grant to provide choices in levels of care
for seniors in our community. I assure
you that Council will continue to do whatever is necessary to see that work
through to completion.
To Cheri Funke, thank you for stepping up to sit
on Council when nobody else did. I had
the opportunity to speak with many of our residents aged 25-40. These are the people in our community that
are "doing" everything - running kids around to activities, coaching,
sitting on volunteer boards, volunteering at our schools. They are the heart and soul of our
community. What they told me is that
they wouldn't run for Council "because they thought they would just get
beat up by the old guys". But you
stepped up and represented the issues young families face, and I thank you on
behalf of our community.
I remember sitting on Council when Pat Toone was
Deputy Mayor and I was Mayor. If you
were still on Council Pat, I would bet you would still be telling me what to
do, and I would be grateful for your thoughts.
Your legacy is one of service to your community. You have modeled a lifetime of dedication to
Council, taking positions that represent people that sometimes don't have a
voice, and you haven't been shy to share your opinion. Thank you to you and to your family for the
sacrifices necessary to serve.
What has Council been doing? The first thing we got to do, before being
sworn in, was to listen to a lawyer for four hours telling us what we can do
and what we can't do. That was
enlightening, and pretty common sense.
Acting CAO Doug Wright has been great at trying to guide "the herd
of cats" that is the new Council until we get to know each other, some of
the background, and catch up on all the complex files and issues previous
Council and staff were dealing with.
What is coming up for Council? Budget.
Council will hear a lot of information next weekend as the staff brings
us the proposed budget items for consideration.
Council has to decide about taxes - up, down, the same. Staff will tell us the implications of those
decisions to levels of service (e.g. snow removal - how much and how fast,
arena hours of operation, water, sewer, and gas system reliability to name just
a few). There is an open house for
budget information to be presented to the public during the week of November
12-15 at the Town Office during business hours. Please come out to learn about
the budget - and give Council and staff your thoughts. Last year there were 2 people who came to the
open house - and only one wanted to talk about the budget. Enough said :)